Do you want to serve your Jewish community as a Lay Spiritual Leader? Then this program is perfect for you.
Darshan, from the Hebrew root D-R-S, means “to interpret or expand upon scripture”. The Darshan is a Jewish prayer leader and educator. Today, the term is often given to the person offering the sermon/dvar Torah in a synagogue setting. But it has a much deeper, fuller history.
In Talmudic times, the Darshan was a revered community member who could take the heavy teachings of the rabbis and make them accessible to the everyday person, using everyday language. Through charismatic storytelling, intellectual discourse, and engagement with the Jewish community, the Darshan could take lofty ideas and bring them to life. Darshan Yeshiva is reviving this ancient role and expanding upon it, educating laypeople to be confident spiritual leaders for their own communities. The program is only $99 per month for five months or a $495 one time payment.
What is included in the program?
4 videos 2 handouts
How did the Torah develop? Who were the ancient Israelites who wrote the previously oral traditions of ancient Israel? In what context was the Torah written, and what historic events shaped the way that this sacred text was understood? Drawing from archeology, ancient history and biblical scholarship, we will learn more about how to core Jewish text that would later become the Hebrew Bible came to be.
12 videos 12 handouts
From the creation of the world to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph. See how the universe began and chart the course for the Jewish people in Egypt.
11 videos 11 handouts
Learn how the Israelites leave slavery in Egypt through the strength of God, who has remembered the covenant with the patriarchs. Led by Moses, the Hebrews will encounter God at Mount Sinai, entering into a covenant with God who gives them their laws and instructions for the Tabernacle through the wilderness.
10 videos 10 handouts
In the book of Leviticus, God tells the Israelites and their priests how to make offerings in the Tabernacle and how to conduct themselves while camped around the holy tent sanctuary. We learn more about the ritual, moral and legal practices of the Israelites, including the concepts of holiness and purity. The focus of Leviticus is on how one must behave in order for God to continue to dwell amongst the people.
10 videos 10 handouts
The Israelites begin their journey into the Promised Land, but not without turmoil. The book of Numbers tells the story of political and social upheaval, spies, curses, and even fiery serpents. A generation will perish in the desert before entering the Promised Land. Learn why in the book of Numbers.
5 videos 5 handouts
On the plains of Moab, Moses delivers the sermons that make up the Deuteronomist Code, which became the Book of Deuteronomy. These sermons recount the years of wandering in the wilderness, pleas to remain holy in the eyes of God, and on keeping the eternal covenant.
5 videos 3 podcasts 8 handouts
Learn the books of Joshua, Judges, Samuel, Kings, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and the 12 Minor Prophets (Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah and the final prophet Malachi). Who are the prophets, and what is their message both in the Bible and for our lives today?
6 videos 2 podcasts 8 handouts
In this series you will discover Chronicles, Psalms, Job, Proverbs, Ruth, Song of Songs, Ecclesiastes, Lamentations, Esther, Daniel and Ezra / Nehemiah. What are these writings about, and how do they continue to influence Jewish life today? We highly recommend you pay particular attention to Ruth and Esther, as these megillot will “come alive” once again in our Jewish holidays series.1 video 12 podcasts 14 handouts
Students will gain an appreciation for each of the many Jewish holidays, as well as the Israeli national holidays. The focus is on the “who, what, where, when, why and how” of each of the holidays. Careful attention has been paid to understanding these holidays from both religious and secular backgrounds, as well as mystical approaches to these chagim. Students will also gain an understanding of how the Jewish calendar works and its origins.
5 videos
Taught by Sara Eiser, a rabbinical student in Israel, this series of five units will give students the ability to go through a typical prayer service using a Hebrew siddur. Learning a new language takes a long time, but this class breaks down the complicated language in an incredibly simple, easy-to-approach manner.
18 videos 1 podcast 1 handout
In this series students will learn the basic Jewish prayers from weekday services: Shacharit (morning), Mincha (afternoon) and Maariv (evening) as well as the Shabbat services. The video presentation of these prayers is in a modified Conservative style; however, video and audio links in each class showcase the nusach (style) of Ashkenazi and Sephardic Orthodoxy. A series of downloadable PDF siddurim are included in the unit.
5 videos 5 podcasts 8 handouts
How did we go from “do not boil a kid in the mother’s milk” to not eating chicken parmesan? Why did the custom of wearing a hat become an iconic Jewish law? And how does Jewish law develop anyway? In this series you will learn how Jewish law developed through the Talmud, and the application of halachic thinking to various Jewish issues. In addition to an Intro to Talmud class, we will learn about Jewish laws surrounding Shabbat, kashrut, egalitarianism, kippot, mezuzah, tefillin, conversion and the inclusion of non-Jews in Jewish life. This class is a great starting off point for people interested in the Darshan Training program, as it takes the perspective of Jewish lay leadership in building the foundation for Talmudic thinking.
3 videos 2 podcasts 5 handouts
Judaism is not just a religion of the mind, but a lived experience through the entire lifecycle. Students begin with Birth and the first month of life, then move onto the milestones of bar/bat mitzvah and confirmation, marriage (as well as divorce) and finally, the process of life, death and mourning. The final class on mourning is terrific when combined with the lay chaplaincy approach to dealing with death.
12 videos 4 podcasts 12 handouts
How did the Jewish experience begin? How did a group of Canaanites break off from society to become the Ancient Israelites? How did these people, shaped by religion, politics and warfare, become the People of the Book? In the first part of the series, based on the most recent research from archeologists and scholars, we will trace the early history of the Jewish people. Units in this series include: the dawn of Jewish history, context of ancient Israelite religion, Judaism after the Babylonian exile, the rule of Rome, rabbinic Jewish development and the Talmud, the introduction of Christianity in the Jewish world, the Medieval period and the Crusades.
A lot happened since the 13th century. In the second part of the series, we explore Mamluk Rule, Jews in the Reformation and Ottoman Empire, Jewish Modern and Contemporary Periods, Islamic Unrest and Realignment in the Middle East, The Modern State of Israel and take a glimpse of the Jewish future. Please note that our classes on the modern state of Israel take a non-political stance.
5 videos 9 handouts
This series covers Judaism and Personal Development, Dealing With Death, Addiction and Recovery, Couples and Families, as well as Judaism’s unique understanding of children. This is a great course to test out one’s interest in the Darshan Training program.
3 videos 4 podcasts 9 handouts
A combination of theory and practice, this course takes on the leadership philosophies and skills needed to serve as a Darshan. From writing a dvar torah to event planning to understanding one’s role as a Darshan (and how it is fundamentally different than a rabbi), this series gives students the tools needed both intellectually and on-the-ground to be organizers of chavurot, independent Jewish communities. This series also showcases the important reality that Darshanim exist both in the Jewish world, and in the greater world of interfaith community.
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Pluralistic Rabbinical Seminary's Community Beit Midrash
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